


A Day At The Beach

by heyjupiter



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, M/M, Minor Bruce Banner/Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Oral Sex, Science Boyfriends, Science Bros, Science Bros Week 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-26
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 10:06:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15434691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjupiter/pseuds/heyjupiter
Summary: "You know, we should really have more Avengers missions end up at the beach," Tony said. "It's good for morale."





	A Day At The Beach

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Science Bros Week 2018, Prompt #3: Heat.

"Did I hurt anybody?" 

Tony had heard Bruce ask this question dozens of times now, but every time it made him wince. Bruce always sounded so ragged, so sad, and yet his first concern never failed to be the welfare of others.

"Nobody who didn't deserve it, baby," Tony replied.

Bruce nodded. His face was still troubled, in marked contrast to their peaceful surroundings. His outfit, however, fit in just fine. The beach was just about the only place where Bruce's standard post-Hulk outfit of bare feet and stretchy purple shorts counted as appropriate attire. 

"The rest of the team is okay?"

"Everyone's fine, thanks to you and the Other Guy. Seriously, this fight would have dragged on forever without you."

"Mm," Bruce replied. Tony had gotten distracted from the rest of the standard post-Hulk protocol, but Bruce was clearly exhausted from the battle and the transformation. Tony reached for the bag he'd previously retrieved from the Quinjet.

"Hey, here," Tony said. He handed Bruce a Gatorade and carefully put a blanket around his shoulders. Bruce wasn't shivering like he often did after a transformation; in fact, it was so hot out that he wasn't sure if Bruce would actually want the blanket here. But it was part of the ritual, and he wasn't about to ruin their day at the beach by letting Bruce go into shock just because the blanket seemed out of place for the climate. 

Bruce silently drank the electrolytes and stared out at the sea. After he'd drained the bottle, he asked, "Where is everyone?" 

"The rest of the team went home already."

"Oh, whoa, was I out for a long time? What happened?"

"Well, you know, this whole area had already been evacuated of civilians, and after everything wound down, I just kind of herded the Other Guy over here. I thought he might like the chance to splash around a little bit before you came back. Everybody could use a beach day, right? But nobody else on the team was feeling very beachy, so I told them they didn't need to stick around."

Bruce looked at Tony sharply. "You were here alone with the Hulk? Tony, what if--"

"Relax, you know the Other Guy loves me, he wasn't gonna hurt me. Especially not at the beach."

Bruce wrapped the blanket more tightly around himself and tucked his face into his knees. Tony continued, "I was in the armor the whole time, I only took it off right when you started to change back. The Hulk was already pretty worn out, he was in a super chill mood. No one else was around. It was totally fine."

Bruce was silent for a long time. Tony rubbed slow circles on his back. Finally, Bruce asked, "Did he have fun?"

"Yeah, I really think he did. He's not much for sand castles, though."

Bruce let out a soundless laugh.

"They were the perfect thing for him to smash. No harm done, at least none that the ocean wouldn't have done in a few hours anyway."

"Mm."

"You hungry?"

"Yeah. Thanks." Tony handed Bruce a protein bar out of his bag and watched as Bruce virtually inhaled it.

"I could really go for some ice cream, how about you?" Tony asked.

"I don't think there's any ice cream in my bag."

"Well, no, but we're at the beach, I'm sure I could get some."

Now that he was fed, hydrated, and somewhat reassured about the Hulk's actions, Bruce was visibly starting to crash. Tony grabbed a nearby abandoned beach towel and spread it out on the sand.

"Hey, big guy, why don't you just lie down here for a minute?"

"Okay," Bruce agreed. With the blanket still wrapped around his shoulders, he stretched out on the towel and sighed. 

Tony stroked his hair and said, "Just relax. I'll be right back."

"Mm."

It was sort of eerie to see the beautiful beach so empty, but Tony felt that he and Bruce might as well take advantage of it. Tony strolled down the beach, scoping out items that hurried tourists had left behind as they evacuated. He was sure none of them would begrudge a couple of tired Avengers borrowing their towels and snacks. If any of it was labeled, he'd be sure to reach out with his thanks and restitution. 

He returned to Bruce with his reclaimed bounty and was surprised to see that Bruce was still awake. Tony spread out another towel next to him. He stripped off the T-shirt and jeans he'd been wearing under the armor and laid down.

"Sunscreen," Bruce mumbled.

"What?"

"You should put on sunscreen, if you can find any."

Tony laughed. "Relax, we're at the beach."

"I'm serious. We're way closer to the equator than in New York, the UV rays are are stronger here. You'll get burned." 

"Okay, jeez, hang on." Tony scrounged up a tube of SPF 30 and started half-heartedly applying it.

"C'mere, let me," Bruce said. He sat back up and started efficiently applying Tony with a coat of sunblock. It wasn't quite a massage, but Tony relaxed and enjoyed the feel of Bruce's hands on him.

"Thank you, Dr. Banner," Tony said playfully.

"Welcome," Bruce said, though his voice was more tired than playful. He laid back down.

"Hang on, let me do you."

"Oh, I don't need it."

"What happened to, 'we're closer to the equator, the sun is stronger here'?"

"My radioactive blood is still stronger than the sun."

Tony whistled. "Damn. Well, why don't you roll over and let me put some on your back anyway. Just for fun. It smells like coconut!"

"Fine." Bruce rolled over, clearly too exhausted to argue with Tony. 

Tony carefully folded up the blanket that was still half-covering Bruce and put it back in the bag, leaving Bruce clad in only his purple shorts. Then he slowly worked sunscreen into Bruce's shoulders, feeling validated when the tight muscles slowly started to relax. Bruce let out a sweet little sigh and Tony smiled. He kept up his gentle massage for a few more minutes, until Bruce's breathing slowed to the steady pace of sleep.

While Bruce slept, Tony checked his phone and found no urgent messages. The rest of the team had already made it home safely. He texted Pepper a photo of the sleeping Bruce and told her _Something came up, we'll be home late._

Her replies came in a rapid-fire string: _Make sure to put on sunscreen!_ and _You guys owe me a beach day!_ and _Come home safe!_ and _I love you!_

He responded, _Love you too. Bruce already made me put on sunscreen. Yes, beach day soon, how about tomorrow?_ Then he tucked his phone into a corner of his borrowed beach towel and stretched out on his stomach. Being Iron Man wasn't quite as physically exhausting as being the Hulk, but it definitely still took its toll on him. The sunshine and ocean breeze felt blissful on his un-armored skin, and he drifted off to a peaceful nap.

When Tony woke up, it was early evening. It was no longer as blazingly hot as it had been in the afternoon, just pleasantly warm. Tony stretched and his body sent him a few urgent messages, letting him know that he should drink some water and also that Bruce hadn't been kidding about the sunscreen. He looked over at Bruce, who was still sleeping. True to his word, Bruce didn't look at all sunburned, although he did seem to have acquired a lightly bronzed look. Tony grudgingly applied another coat of sunblock to the parts of himself he could reach, hoping to prevent any further injury. Then he brought over an abandoned cooler that was stocked with still-cold drinks. Bruce stirred while Tony was drinking his second bottle of water.

"Hey," Bruce said, his voice hoarse. Wordlessly, Tony handed him a water. 

After Bruce drank it, Tony asked, "How you feeling?"

"Good, actually. This is...nice. Definitely nicer than waking up on the Quinjet."

Tony had been confident that a beach day was a great idea, but was glad to hear Bruce agree. He leaned in for a kiss. Bruce kissed him back for a moment, but then pulled away with a sympathetic wince on his face. He reached out to lightly stroke Tony's sunburned shoulder.

"Oh, Tony, I'm sorry--I really should have reapplied that sunblock for you, huh?"

Tony laughed. "You really gotta stop trying to take responsibility for _everything_ , Bruce. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have put on any in the first place."

Bruce sighed. "If it weren't for the Other Guy, you wouldn't have been at the beach in the first place."

"Bruce, my treasure, I love the beach. I very deliberately chose to spend the day at the beach with you. All of you. A little sunburn is an absolutely acceptable price of admission for that." Bruce said nothing, and Tony continued, "Seriously, we have this whole beach to ourselves, can't you think of something we could do besides sit around worrying?"

Bruce gave him a crooked smile and said, "Did anyone leave behind a game of travel Scrabble?"

Tony laughed and gently pushed Bruce back down onto the towel. "You know, I didn't see one. Guess we'll have to find something else to do." He straddled Bruce and leaned down to kiss him in earnest. Then he pulled back--he reminded himself that Bruce usually felt a little disconnected from his body after transforming, and he wasn't always in the mood for physical affection right away. But it could also be a great way to distract Bruce from the sad haze that could settle over him after a Hulk out. 

Tony asked, "Is this good? You know, my life-threatening sunburn aside? If--I mean--if you're not feeling up to this, we could--look for the Scrabble--"

Bruce wrapped his hands around Tony's head and pulled Tony's face back down to his own, which ended Tony's babble for the moment. They made out on the beach like teenagers, which was an extremely enjoyable way to spend the evening. Then, just as Bruce reached up for the waistband of Tony's boxers, Tony said, "Wait, hang on, I just remembered something."

He stood up. Bruce sat up on the towel and tilted his head quizzically. He looked bemused and disheveled in a way that made Tony reconsider his decision to leave, even for a minute. 

"Don't move a muscle, I'll be right back," Tony promised. He was sure he'd seen an ice cream vendor's cart on his earlier walk--yes, there it was. He opened it and was pleased to see that its cooling system had held up nicely to the day's heat. He made a mental note of what company he was stealing ice cream from, and then returned to Bruce with a handful of pre-packaged frozen treats.

Bruce laughed when he saw what Tony had brought back with him. Tony grinned. "Come on, what's better, ice cream on the beach, or sex on the beach? Trick question, let's have both."

He took a minute to quickly brush sand off of Bruce's chest, and then he pushed Bruce back down on the towel and unwrapped what turned out to be an orange creamsicle. Bruce was still laughing, but he gasped when Tony touched the tip cold ice cream to his chest. The gasp turned to a moan when Tony followed the ice cream with his tongue.

"Yeah? You like this?" Tony asked, pulling his mouth back from Bruce's hard nipple. Bruce was always very sensitive to touch, but particularly so after a transformation.

"Mm, god, yes," Bruce said. "God, Tony…"

The ice cream melted quickly, and Bruce's purple shorts were a sticky mess before Tony even got to the good part. He helped Bruce take them off and set them aside before enthusiastically turning his attention back to everything that had been under the shorts.

Bruce came quickly and was eager to return the favor. He unwrapped a chocolate Fudgesicle that felt amazing against Tony's sunburnt skin, even before Bruce moved to his thankfully un-burnt front half. After Bruce made Tony scream his name to the empty beach, he came back up to give Tony a sweet kiss that tasted like chocolate and sex. Tony wrapped his arms around Bruce and smugly congratulated himself for having the best ideas.

After a leisurely embrace, during which they both caught their breath, Bruce said, "Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"This was really great. Thank you."

"It really was, wasn't it?"

"But now I'm starting to feel kind of disgusting and I think we might get permanently stuck together if we don't go rinse off soon."

"There would be worse fates," Tony murmured. Bruce was right, though--now that the heat of the moment had faded, the combination of ice cream, sand, sunscreen, and come didn't feel entirely pleasant on his irritated skin. 

Tony sighed and carefully extricated himself from Bruce's arms. "I'll race you to the water!" He said, and ran off before Bruce was even standing up. The salt water stung at first, but soon Tony adjusted. He floated happily in the warm water, feeling his sore muscles relax. Bruce laughed as he splashed through the water to join him.

"You know, we should really have more Avengers missions end up at the beach," Tony said. "It's good for morale."

"You should tell that to SHIELD."

“I’ll definitely do that.”

For a while, they floated in peaceful silence.

Finally, Tony said, “I guess we should start to make arrangements to get back home. Pepper felt left out, so I told her we could all have a beach day tomorrow, and she will _not_ be happy if we cancel.”

“Why doesn’t Pepper just come here?” Bruce asked. 

Tony blinked in surprise at the obvious brilliance of it. 

Clearly misunderstanding Tony’s silence, Bruce added, “Or we could go--“

“No, Bruce, you’re a genius. Pepper should absolutely come here. There’s no reason we need to be back in New York just yet, and this beach is way better than Rockaway or anything else on the East Coast.”

Bruce smiled. Tony wasn't sure he'd ever seen Bruce looking so content as he did now, floating under the bright moonlight. 

"I'll tell her to pack Travel Scrabble," Tony said.

"Oh...I'm sure we'll find some way to stay occupied without it."

Tony returned Bruce's sly smile. Beach days were definitely _great_ for morale.


End file.
